Evidence map›Paper›PMID 34914777›Full record

ArticlePloS one2021

Axially rigid steerable needle with compliant active tip control.

M de Vries, J Sikorski, S Misra, J J van den Dobbelsteen

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in PloS one, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 8 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
8citing papers in PubMed
0.9field-weighted citation impact, top 28% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

8 citing papers in PubMed, 15 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Article
  2. Article
  3. Analysis of Needle Placement Error During Prostate Biopsies in Real Clinical Cases: Effects of Needle Tip Orientation and Target Location.Annual International Conference of the IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society. IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society. Annual International Conference · 2025
    Article
  4. Article
  5. FBG-based Shape-Sensing to Enable Lateral Deflection Methods of Autonomous Needle Insertion.Proceedings of the ... IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems. IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems · 2024
    Article
  6. Article
  7. Article
  8. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

4 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.

M de VriesDepartment of Biomechanical Engineering, Delft University of Technology, Delft, the Netherlands.ORCID 0000-0001-8743-2049
J SikorskiDepartment of Biomechanical Engineering, University of Twente, Enschede, the Netherlands.
S MisraDepartment of Biomechanical Engineering, University of Twente, Enschede, the Netherlands.
J J van den DobbelsteenDepartment of Biomechanical Engineering, Delft University of Technology, Delft, the Netherlands.ORCID 0000-0003-3423-1707
Delft University of Technology · NLUniversity Medical Center Groningen · NL

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Steerable instruments allow for precise access to deeply-seated targets while sparing sensitive tissues and avoiding anatomical structures. In this study we present a novel omnidirectional steerable instrument for prostate high-dose-rate (HDR) brachytherapy (BT). The instrument utilizes a needle with internal compliant mechanism, which enables distal tip steering through proximal instrument bending while retaining high axial and flexural rigidity. Finite element analysis evaluated the design and the prototype was validated in experiments involving tissue simulants and ex-vivo bovine tissue. Ultrasound (US) images were used to provide visualization and shape-reconstruction of the instrument during the insertions. In the experiments lateral tip steering up to 20 mm was found. Manually controlled active needle tip steering in inhomogeneous tissue simulants and ex-vivo tissue resulted in mean targeting errors of 1.4 mm and 2 mm in 3D position, respectively. The experiments show that steering response of the instrument is history-independent. The results indicate that the endpoint accuracy of the steerable instrument is similar to that of the conventional rigid HDR BT needle while adding the ability to steer along curved paths. Due to the design of the steerable needle sufficient axial and flexural rigidity is preserved to enable puncturing and path control within various heterogeneous tissues. The developed instrument has the potential to overcome problems currently unavoidable with conventional instruments, such as pubic arch interference in HDR BT, without major changes to the clinical workflow.

Indexed as

Phantoms, ImagingAnimalsBrachytherapyCattleEquipment DesignFinite Element AnalysisHumansMaleNeedlesProstateUltrasonography

Identifiers

PMID34914777
PMCPMC8675730
OpenAlexW4200476620

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.